Portable electric hand lamp



Jan. l, 1929.

H. F. RElCHENBACH PORTABLE ELECTRIC HAND LAMP Filed Aug. 26, 1927 Patented Jan. l, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HOWARD F. REICHENBACH. OF WOLCOTT, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO CHASE COM- PANIES, INCORPORATED, OF WATERBURY, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION.

PORTABLE ELECTRIC HAND LAMP.

Application filed August 26, 1927. Serial No. 215,650.

This invention relatesto an improvement in port-able electric handlamps and` particularly to an improvement in switch-media.- nisms therefor and mode of mounting saine.

The object of this invention is to provide at a low cost of manufacture, a simple, conJ l venient and reliable, portable electric handlamp, constructed with particular reference to preventing the derangement of its switchmechanisms.

- With thisobject in view my invention consists in a portable electric handlamp char acterized by its provision with a bridge-plate mounted near one end of its casing and provided with a bearing for the reception and guidance of one end of the switch-bar, the opposite end of which is secured to the casing for reciprocation therein to make and break the circuit.V

My invention further consists in a portable electric handlam-p characterized as above and having certain other details of construction and combination of parts as will be hereinafter described and particularly recited in the claims. n

Y Fig. 1 is a broken view in vertical central section of the upper'end of a portable electric handlamp embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a top or plan view thereof with the cap unit removed;

Fig. 3 is a broken detail sectional view on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1; f

Fig. 4 is ay detached perspective view of the switch-bar Fig. 5 is a corresponding view of the bridge-plate assembly.

In carrying out my invention as herein shown, I employ a tubular sheet metal casing expanded at its upper end to form a collar 11 provided with rolled-in threads 12 which coact with similar threads 13 formed upon a skirt 14 depending from the cap-member proper 15. The upper end of the capmember 15, just mentionel, is formed with rolled-in threads 16 coacting with similar threads 17 formed upon a removable bezelring 18. Between the extreme upper end of the cap-member andthe inwardly projecting annular flange 19 of the bezel-ring aforesaid, is a plano-convex lens 20 of usual form.

The skirt 14, cap-memberl and bezelring 1 8 together constitute what I may for convenience term, a cap-unit which houses a reflector 21 having at its upper end a downwardly turned annular flange 22 which is adapted to snugly lit the interior of the threaded upper end of the cap-member 15 aforesaid.

Immediately below the extreme upper end yof the collar 11 of the casing 10 I form an inwardly projecting annular bead 23 upon which rests a disc-like bridge-plate 24 of insulating material which is held in place thereon against upward displacement by three corresponding indents 25 inwardly struck from t-he extreme upper end of the collar 11. To prevent the bridge-plate 24 from having rotary movementwith respect to the casing, it is formed in its periphery7 as shown, with a locking notch 26 which receives a short vertically arranged rib 27 also struck inwardly from the said collar 11 as clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

The bridge-plate 24 is centrally perforated for the reception of a threaded sheet-metal lamp-socket 28 which is formed with an outwardly extending annular stop-shoulder 29 engaged at its upper face with a contact-disc 30 to hold the same in place against the underface ofl said bridge-plate; the upper end of said lamp-socket 28 being outwardly turned to form a mounting-flange 31, whereby the said bridge-plate and contact-disc are clamped between the same and the stopshoulder 29 aforesaid, and the socket itself is mounted in place in the said bridge-plate.

To control the iiow of currentto the incandescent electric-lamp 32 which has its eX- ternally threaded stem 33 mounted in the socket 28 aforesaid, I provide a flexible reciprocating switch-bar 34 which is bent as shown to form a laterally offsetting contactshoulder 35 and an upwardly extending guide-nger 36 which latter is entered into and guided by a bearing slot 37 in the bridgeplate 24 aforesaid. Near its lower end the said switch-bar is formed upon its opposite edges with aligned coupling-notches 38 each of which receives one of the two fingers 39 respectively projecting inwardly from the side walls of a sheet-metal finger-button 40 located upon the outer surface of the casing 10 as clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The casing 10 is formed with two vertically arranged parallel slots 41 through which the fingers 39 aforesaid project and in which they have limited reciprocating movement. The inner ends'of the said fingers are bent inwardly towards each other over the innerface of the switch-bar 34, as shown in Fig. 3,

so as to firmlyl couple the finger-button al() with the switch-bar 34 for concurrent reciprocating movement therewith. vAs isusual in portable electric handlaniips one terminal of an electro-chemical cell@ is electrically connectedto'the easing 10 while its complementary terminal is in electrical engagement with the center-contact 43 of the lamp 32, the other terminal of the lamp being formed as usual by the threaded stem 33 ywhich is in electrical engagementwitli the socket 28 which latter in turn is electrically connected to the contact-disc 30. By moving the contact-shoulder 35 ofthe switch-bar 34 into engagement with the contact-disc. 30 as shown lby full lines in Fig. l of the drawings7 the circuit is closedthrough tie'lamp 32. Conversely, by moving the said contactshoulder out of engagement with the'contactdisc, as shown by broken lines in "the same figure, vthe l circuit :is broken.

' As thus Constructed and a ranged the switch-mechanism of my improved portable electric handlamp 'is-of simple and inexpensive desien and-byvirtue of thefact that the switch-bar is supported at Aits upper end in the bridge-'plate'24, in addition to beino supported `at its lower end by the lingers 13S-of Y the Vfinger-button 40 the said switch-bar is I rendered practically immune to derangement from ordinary `rough handling'.

I claim:

l. In a portable electric handlamp, the

Vsaid bridge-plate forthe reception ofthe said'lainp ;ra.contact plate positioned upon the inner face of the and laterally-osetting from the said .lamp-socketgand a switch-bar provided with a laterally and 4,inwardly oliset contact-shoulder coacting with the said contact-:plate for controllingthe flow of current to the Said lamp and formed with an upstanding.guide-finger reciprocatable in the said bearing-passage; whereby the outer end of the said switch-bar is positioned against inward or outward radial displacement by the inner and outer Walls respectively of the said bearing-passages. n

2. ln a portable `electric hand-lamp, the combination with 'the casing, electro-chemical cell and lampth ereof glo-f a bridge-'plate of insulatingmaterial imounted in' the sa'id casing near one end thereof and formed with a bearing-.passage spaced inward from its edge and Vhaving' inner and outerwalls; `alamp-soclret carried bythe said bridge-,plate for thereception of the' said lamp; a contact-plate positioned upon the inner face of thesaid bridgeplate and laterally-offsetting from the said lamp-socket; and a switch-bar having` its outer end reversely-folded radially inwardly and Athen outward to form a' contact-shoulder for engagement with the Vsaid contact-'plate and finally' bent outward in substantialparal- Vlelism with the aXisof 'the handlampstruclture to form-a guide-'finger'reclprocatable m specification;

HOWARD F. REICHENBACH. 

